GWU Roundup: Basketball Madness, weekend events

By Special to The Star

Published: Sunday, November 3, 2013 at 05:55 PM.

BOILING SPRINGS — Fans will have an opportunity to meet and interact with both Gardner-Webb University basketball teams Monday in the annual Runnin’ Bulldog Madness event set for 7 p.m. in Paul Porter Arena.

Admission is free and the event is open to the general public.

Highlight clips for each squad will be shown before the event begins, and player introductions will begin at 7 p.m. Following the event, team schedule posters will be available for an autograph session.

The Madness includes a 3-point shootout, team hot shot competition, team skits, skills competition and a men’s basketball scrimmage beginning at 7:50 p.m.

Both teams open the 2013-14 season on Friday. The GWU women host Montreatat 7 p.m. that day, and the men’s team travels to face Xavier at the same time (Fox Sports Net).

BOILING SPRINGS — Fans will have an opportunity to meet and interact with both Gardner-Webb University basketball teams Monday in the annual Runnin’ Bulldog Madness event set for 7 p.m. in Paul Porter Arena.

Admission is free and the event is open to the general public.

Highlight clips for each squad will be shown before the event begins, and player introductions will begin at 7 p.m. Following the event, team schedule posters will be available for an autograph session.

The Madness includes a 3-point shootout, team hot shot competition, team skits, skills competition and a men’s basketball scrimmage beginning at 7:50 p.m.

Both teams open the 2013-14 season on Friday. The GWU women host Montreatat 7 p.m. that day, and the men’s team travels to face Xavier at the same time (Fox Sports Net).

Women's college golf

Dodson, Henderson pace GWU — Gardner-Webb freshmen Taylor Dodson and Julia Henderson each posted a top-10 finish to lead the women’s golf team to a fourth-place team finish at the Winthrop Intercollegiate at the par-72, 6,044 yard Rock Hill Country Club.

Dodson, who finished in a four-way tie for second place, led the Runnin’ Bulldogs with rounds of 79 and 74 to finish with a 36-hole score of 9-over 153, +9. The second-place finish is Dodson’s third top-five finish of the 2013 fall season.

After shooting the best 54-hole score of her young career last time out, Henderson followed with rounds of 81 and 78 to finish in a tie for ninth with her two-round combined score of 15-over 159.

Graves had a 5:07.76 in the 500 freestyle and a 56.98 in the 100 butterfly. She added a second-place finish in the 200 butterfly (2:10.77).

Charity Byrum had a win in the 100 breaststroke (1:05.71). Byrum was second in the 200 IM (2:12.12) and the 200 breaststroke (2:26.62).

Christina Clayton tied for first in the 50 freestyle with Wingate’s Ana Fish with a 24.93.

Gardner-Webb had a first place from its 200 medley relay (Kaylee McCallan, Byrum, Mary O’Doherty, Faith Kempf) with a 1:47.54. GWU’s 400 freestyle relay also won its race, with Graves, Adél Kiss, Byrum and Jenna Ballinger teaming up for a 3:36.72.

Gardner-Webb hosts the VMI Relay meet on Saturday in Boiling Springs.

Men’s college swimming

GWU men 2nd —Gardner-Webb men’s swimming achieved a second-place team finish at the Wingate Quad meet, with 864.5 points.

Nathan Lile produced a win for the Runnin’ Bulldogs in the 200 IM in 1:55.09. Lile was also second in the 200 backstroke (1:53.94), second in the 400 IM (4:08.94) and third in the 200 butterfly (1:56.14).

Brandon Searle had the victory in the 100 butterfly (52.22), and Luke Denman won the 1,000 freestyle (9:46.13)

Gardner-Webb won the 200 medley relay, as Connor Bos, Searle, Tate Warden and Nicholas Dyer teamed up for a 1:37.34.

Gardner-Webb faces Winthrop and Presbyterian on the road this coming weekend.

College wrestling

Gardner-Webb drops 2 of 3 —The Gardner-Webb wrestling team opened the season with two losses and a victory in the UVA Quad Meet Saturday.

GWU lost 24-12 to West Virginia and 43-0 to Virginia before a 40-9 triumph against Anderson (S.C.).

Robbie Golde, Austin Trott, Boyce Cornwell and Justin Kozera posted two wins apiece on the day, while four other Runnin’ Bulldogs earned a win in the defeat of Anderson.

Gardner-Webb (1-2) heads to the Hokie Open on Saturday in Blacksburg, Va.

College cross country

GWU teams in top 10 —The Gardner-Webb men’s and women’s cross country teams each achieved 10th-place team finishes on Saturday morning as both squads competed at 2013 Big South Cross Country Championships hosted by VMI.

The GWU women totaled 302 points, led by Jenna Ford in 22nd with a 19:27.09 on a 5K course.

The GWU men tallied 329 points, paced by Mike McClay, whose 29:00.33 on an 8K course put him in 59th.

GWU wraps up fall season — Gardner-Webb wrapped up its fall competition at the Winthrop Invitational, as all four Runnin’ Bulldogs who competed at the three-day invitational picked up a win in singles play.